I left the garage without running.<\/p>\n
Every instinct told me to hurry, but panic attracts attention.<\/p>\n
I kept my pace even until the elevator doors closed.<\/p>\n
Only then did I allow myself to breathe.<\/p>\n
Inside my car, I locked every door.<\/p>\n
The photographs were still on my phone.<\/p>\n
Felix\u2019s sedan.<\/p>\n
The conference badge.<\/p>\n
The blonde woman.<\/p>\n
His hand against her stomach.<\/p>\n
I uploaded everything to cloud storage.<\/p>\n
Then I created an email address Felix didn\u2019t know and sent copies there.<\/p>\n
I had no idea whether that precaution was necessary.<\/p>\n
Twenty-four hours earlier, I would have considered it paranoid.<\/p>\n
Twenty-four hours earlier, I also believed my husband was in Cleveland.<\/p>\n
Before going home, I drove past Hawthorne Books.<\/p>\n
The shop stood between a florist and an antique store.<\/p>\n
Its sign was faded enough to disappear into the block.<\/p>\n
Tomorrow at two.<\/p>\n
Caroline would be waiting.<\/p>\n
I memorized the entrances and continued driving.<\/p>\n
When I reached our house, Felix\u2019s car was absent.<\/p>\n
Of course it was.<\/p>\n
I entered through the front door and stood listening.<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
I went upstairs.<\/p>\n
Our bedroom looked almost exactly as it had that morning.<\/p>\n
Almost.<\/p>\n
The closet door was open.<\/p>\n
I always closed it.<\/p>\n
Inside, Felix\u2019s large suitcase sat on the floor.<\/p>\n
I stared at it.<\/p>\n
He had supposedly taken luggage to Cleveland.<\/p>\n
Perhaps he had used the smaller case.<\/p>\n
Perhaps this meant nothing.<\/p>\n
I crouched and opened it.<\/p>\n
Folded shirts lay inside.<\/p>\n
Trousers.<\/p>\n
Socks.<\/p>\n
Everything arranged with unnatural neatness.<\/p>\n
The clothes had not been worn.<\/p>\n
No hotel receipts.<\/p>\n
No laundry.<\/p>\n
No toiletries.<\/p>\n
I searched the side pocket.<\/p>\n
Business cards.<\/p>\n
Old receipts.<\/p>\n
A white envelope.<\/p>\n
Inside was a jewelry-store receipt dated four months earlier.<\/p>\n
Diamond necklace.<\/p>\n
$4,860.<\/p>\n
Paid from our joint account.<\/p>\n
I had never received a diamond necklace.<\/p>\n
I photographed the receipt.<\/p>\n
Then I replaced it exactly where I had found it.<\/p>\n
That was when the front door opened downstairs.<\/p>\n
\u201cNora?\u201d<\/p>\n
Felix.<\/p>\n
I closed the suitcase.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m upstairs.\u201d<\/p>\n
His footsteps approached.<\/p>\n
I sat on the bed and opened a random application on my phone.<\/p>\n
Felix appeared carrying a bakery box.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom sent reinforcements.\u201d<\/p>\n
I smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cMore cake?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe thinks food solves everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
He kissed my forehead.<\/p>\n
I nearly recoiled.<\/p>\n
Instead, I leaned into him.<\/p>\n
\u201cFeeling better?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMuch.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
His eyes moved toward the closet.<\/p>\n
Only for a fraction of a second.<\/p>\n
Then back to me.<\/p>\n
Had he noticed the door?<\/p>\n
Was he checking the suitcase?<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got another conference next week,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlready?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThree days.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPhiladelphia.\u201d<\/p>\n
The answer arrived without hesitation.<\/p>\n
I smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cTry to bring me something this time.\u201d<\/p>\n
He laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cDemanding wife.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou married me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI did.\u201d<\/p>\n
His wedding ring flashed as he reached for the bakery box.<\/p>\n
I wondered whether Elise had ever watched that ring and believed his explanations.<\/p>\n
Dinner was almost normal.<\/p>\n
That was the unbearable part.<\/p>\n
Felix complained about work.<\/p>\n
I told him about a fictional headache.<\/p>\n
We shared cake.<\/p>\n
He washed the dishes.<\/p>\n
At nine, he fell asleep on the couch with the television running.<\/p>\n
His phone buzzed on the coffee table.<\/p>\n
The screen lit.<\/p>\n
E: She asked for chocolate ice cream again.<\/p>\n
Another message.<\/p>\n
E: She\u2019s kicking like crazy tonight. Wish you were here.<\/p>\n
I looked at Felix.<\/p>\n
Sleeping.<\/p>\n
A third notification appeared.<\/p>\n
Unknown Number.<\/p>\n
She was at the garage today.<\/p>\n
My skin went cold.<\/p>\n
Another message followed.<\/p>\n
Tell your wife to stop asking questions before someone gets hurt.<\/p>\n
I stopped breathing.<\/p>\n
The security camera.<\/p>\n
Someone had identified me.<\/p>\n
Worse, they knew Felix well enough to contact him.<\/p>\n
The phone buzzed again.<\/p>\n
Felix woke.<\/p>\n
He picked it up.<\/p>\n
For less than a second, his face changed.<\/p>\n
Fear.<\/p>\n
Then he noticed me watching.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything okay?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
He locked the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWork.\u201d<\/p>\n
I nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey seem needy.\u201d<\/p>\n
A laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have no idea.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m showering.\u201d<\/p>\n
The bathroom door closed upstairs.<\/p>\n
I immediately opened my notebook.<\/p>\n
Unknown number knows I was at garage.<\/p>\n
Warned Felix.<\/p>\n
Threatened me.<\/p>\n
Felix looked afraid, not surprised.<\/p>\n
I underlined the last sentence.<\/p>\n
That distinction mattered.<\/p>\n
He knew enough to understand the threat.<\/p>\n
The next afternoon, I reached Hawthorne Books early.<\/p>\n
Old paper and coffee scented the narrow shop.<\/p>\n
Three customers browsed downstairs.<\/p>\n
A woman in a navy coat waited near the back.<\/p>\n
\u201cNora?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCaroline?\u201d<\/p>\n
She stood.<\/p>\n
She looked ordinary.<\/p>\n
Late forties, perhaps.<\/p>\n
Dark hair.<\/p>\n
No dramatic trench coat. No mysterious sunglasses.<\/p>\n
That somehow made the situation stranger.<\/p>\n
She led me upstairs to a small reading room.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo cameras,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou checked?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI chose this place because I know the owner.\u201d<\/p>\n
She placed a thick folder on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think you should have this.\u201d<\/p>\n
I opened it.<\/p>\n
The first photograph showed Felix outside the gray apartment building.<\/p>\n
Eight months earlier.<\/p>\n
Another showed him carrying groceries.<\/p>\n
Seven months.<\/p>\n
Another showed him assembling a crib.<\/p>\n
Another showed him painting a room.<\/p>\n
Another showed him holding ultrasound photographs.<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou took these?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome. Others came from surveillance records.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis started before Elise was pregnant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cLonger than the pregnancy.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned through receipts.<\/p>\n
Restaurants.<\/p>\n
Hotels.<\/p>\n
Parking.<\/p>\n
Utilities connected to the apartment.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said you were looking for Elise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy photograph Felix?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he kept appearing.\u201d<\/p>\n
I reached another page.<\/p>\n
Neighbor interviews.<\/p>\n
One sentence had been highlighted.<\/p>\n
Male resident identified himself as Felix Hartmann.<\/p>\n
I read it twice.<\/p>\n
\u201cHartmann?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cElise\u2019s surname.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not his name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at the next statement.<\/p>\n
A neighbor described Felix and Elise as husband and wife.<\/p>\n
Another believed they had lived together for years.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe lives with me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s expression did not change.<\/p>\n
\u201cAccording to several residents, he spends three or four nights a week there during certain periods.\u201d<\/p>\n
Business trips.<\/p>\n
I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n
Chicago.<\/p>\n
Denver.<\/p>\n
Seattle.<\/p>\n
Cleveland.<\/p>\n
Eleven parking charges.<\/p>\n
Eleven lies.<\/p>\n
Caroline pushed a sealed envelope toward me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is why I contacted you.\u201d<\/p>\n
My name was written across the front.<\/p>\n
Nora.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf anything happens, give this to Nora.\u201d<\/p>\n
My mouth went dry.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho wrote it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElise.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked up sharply.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve spoken with her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how did you get this?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was delivered to my office by someone who knew I was investigating her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t know a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019m still alive.\u201d<\/p>\n
I studied her.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you think I\u2019m in danger?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think someone is controlling information very carefully.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn\u2019t an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the only responsible one I can give.\u201d<\/p>\n
I opened the envelope.<\/p>\n
Inside was a photograph.<\/p>\n
Felix stood outside a restaurant.<\/p>\n
Beside him was Elise.<\/p>\n
Several feet away stood another person.<\/p>\n
Me.<\/p>\n
The date was eleven years earlier.<\/p>\n
I stared at my younger face.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou recognize yourself?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you recognize Elise?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFelix?\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked closer.<\/p>\n
The photograph was grainy.<\/p>\n
But the man was Felix.<\/p>\n
Younger.<\/p>\n
Different haircut.<\/p>\n
Same posture.<\/p>\n
Same face.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hadn\u2019t met him yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did you meet Felix?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNovember. Eleven years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis photograph was taken in October.\u201d<\/p>\n
My hands began to shake.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat can\u2019t be right.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCheck the date yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n
I did.<\/p>\n
October 21.<\/p>\n
Weeks before the charity fundraiser where Felix had always said we first met.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe I was at the same restaurant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe he was there and neither of us noticed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlso possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cElise could have been anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hated Caroline\u2019s refusal to tell me what to believe.<\/p>\n
Then I realized that was precisely why I trusted her more than Felix.<\/p>\n
She turned over the photograph.<\/p>\n
Three handwritten words appeared on the back.<\/p>\n
She doesn\u2019t remember.<\/p>\n
I looked at Caroline.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho wrote that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I laughed once, without humor.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is insane.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI agree.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does Elise want from me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would she warn me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen tell me something you do know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline opened another section of the folder.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour husband\u2019s business travel began increasing approximately eight years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo some of those trips weren\u2019t connected to Elise.\u201d<\/p>\n
She showed me photographs of Felix entering buildings in different cities.<\/p>\n
Dallas.<\/p>\n
Nashville.<\/p>\n
Phoenix.<\/p>\n
St. Louis.<\/p>\n
Always carrying the same black leather briefcase.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho are those people?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re still identifying them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was Felix doing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s one of the questions someone doesn\u2019t want answered.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of the unknown message.<\/p>\n
Stop asking questions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does any of this have to do with his family?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s expression tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is where it gets complicated.\u201d<\/p>\n
She pulled out a photocopied financial document.<\/p>\n
A trust appeared in the heading.<\/p>\n
Blake Family Legacy Trust.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know they had one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFelix\u2019s family has had it for decades.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy hide it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what I\u2019m trying to understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
She showed me an older handwritten note.<\/p>\n
The handwriting looked familiar.<\/p>\n
Ingrid\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Across the top were words that made my stomach tighten.<\/p>\n
Find a wife who qualifies.<\/p>\n
Below them were categories.<\/p>\n
Age.<\/p>\n
Education.<\/p>\n
Employment.<\/p>\n
Health.<\/p>\n
Family history.<\/p>\n
Fertility.<\/p>\n
Several women\u2019s names appeared.<\/p>\n
Most were crossed out.<\/p>\n
One was circled.<\/p>\n
Nora Whitmore.<\/p>\n
My maiden name.<\/p>\n
I checked the date.<\/p>\n
Six months before Felix had asked me out.<\/p>\n
The room seemed to contract around me.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline said nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis isn\u2019t real.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI had the handwriting compared.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCompared with what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDocuments Ingrid signed.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked again.<\/p>\n
Beside my name were notes.<\/p>\n
Stable career.<\/p>\n
No criminal history.<\/p>\n
Good credit.<\/p>\n
Limited close family.<\/p>\n
Wants children.<\/p>\n
That final line had been underlined.<\/p>\n
My stomach turned.<\/p>\n
I remembered Ingrid hugging me the first time Felix introduced us.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve heard wonderful things about you.<\/p>\n
At the time, I thought Felix had told her.<\/p>\n
What if she had already read a file?<\/p>\n
Near the bottom was another handwritten sentence.<\/p>\n
She must never know the real arrangement.<\/p>\n
I pushed the paper away.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat arrangement?\u201d<\/p>\n
Caroline\u2019s face was pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
For once, her uncertainty frightened me more than an answer would have.<\/p>\n
I left the garage without running. Every instinct told me to hurry, but panic attracts attention. I kept my pace even until the elevator doors closed. Only then did I … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25356,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25359","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=25359"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25359\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25394,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25359\/revisions\/25394"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/25356"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=25359"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=25359"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=25359"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}